Form fitting lower body garment and method of making same

ABSTRACT

Garments, such as panty hose are provided with increased fullness of fabric, as for example in the rear or seat portion relative to the amount of fabric across the front so as to provide improved form fitting characteristics thereto and to reduce the tendency to pull the rear of the waistband downwardly when the wearer sits, bends and squats. The garment is formed of a pair of knitted tubular legs with a panty half knit integrally with each leg and extending upwardly therefrom. Each panty half is slit downwardly with at least a portion of the slit in each panty half extending across a plurality of wales. The corresponding slit edges are seamed together to form the panty of the garment and the offset portions of the slits form fullness fabric areas in an area of the panty for accommodating, for example, the buttocks of the wearer. Several different types of offset slits are disclosed to vary the amount and location of the fullness fabric areas in the rear or seat portion of the garment.

Eli tates Patent 1 Colbert, Jr.

[451 Dec. 10,1974

[ FORM FITTING LOWER BODY GARMENT AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME [75]Inventor: Robert B. Colbert, Jr., Humboldt,

Tenn.

[73] Assignee: Wayne-Gossard Corporation,

Humboldt, Tenn.

[22] Filed: Apr. 29, 1974 [21] Appl. No.: 465,429

[52] US. Cl. 2/224 R, 66/177 [51] Int. Cl A4lb 9/04 [58] Field of Search2/224 R, 227, 239, 240; 66/177, 176, 189

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 701,744 6/1902 2,928,3973/1960 3,007,327 11/1961 3,599,241 8/1971 3,651,670 3/1972 3,694,81610/1972 R25,360 3/1963 FORElGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 1,197,921 6/1959France 2/224 R Primary Examiner-H. Hampton Hunter Attorney, Agent, orFirm -Parrott, Bell, Seltzer, Park 8; Gibson [57] ABSTRACT Garments,such as panty hose are provided with increased-fullness of fabric, asfor example in therear or seat portion relative to the amount of fabricacross the front so as to provide improved form fitting characteristicsthereto and to reduce the tendency to pull the rear of the waistbanddownwardly when the wearer sits, bends and squats. The garment is formedof a pair of knitted tubular legs with a panty half knit integrally witheach leg and extending upwardly therefrom. Each panty half is slitdownwardly with at least a portion of the slit in each panty halfextending across a plurality of wales. The corresponding slit edges areseamed together to form the panty of the garment and the offset portionsof the slits form fullness fabric areas in an area of the panty foraccommodating, for example, the buttocks of the wearer. Severaldifferent types of offset slits are disclosed to vary the amount andlocation of the fullness fabric areas in the rear or seat portion of thegarment.

20 Claims, 15 Drawing Figures PATENTEL DEC i 74 FORM FITTING LOWER BODYGARMENT AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME This invention relates generally tolower body garments having long legs, such as panty hose,'tights,leotards, and the like and to lower body garments having short legs,such as bathing suit trunks, panties, panty girdles and the like. Moreparticularly, the present invention relates to improving the fittingquality and comfort of this type of garment by providing fullness fabricareas in a selected area of the panty portion to accommodate lowertorsal protuberances of the wearer, such as the buttocks.

Heretofore, it has been the practice to produce panty hose by formingvertical slits extending substantially straight down an inside wale of apair of elongate hosiery blanks. The corresponding edges of the slits ofadjacent hosiery blanks are then seamed to form a seam which extendsdownwardly from the waist opening in the front and rear and passesthrough the crotch of the panty portion of the garment. The seamingtogether of the edges of the straight vertical slits produces a pantywhich is symmetrical, that is, the front and rear portions of the pantycontain the same amount of fabric and the front and rear portions of thepanty are shaped in an identical manner. Since most panty hose are knitof some type of stretchable yarn, the panty portion will stretch andconform to the configuration of the wearer. However, the distance acrossthe buttocks of the wearer is usually greater than the distance acrossthe front and this results in the rear portion of the panty beingstretched to a greater extent than the front portion which tends tocause discomfort and to place extra strain on the connecting seam at therear of the garment which can result in rupture of the seam. Also, whenthe wearer-of this conventional type of symmetrical panty hose sits,bends or squats,-additional stretching of the fabric, in the seat of thegarment takes place. This additional stretching places even greaterstrain on the connecting seam in the crotch and rear of the panty andtends to pull the rear portion of the waist opening down on the wearerso that when the wearer again assumes a standing position, it isnecessary to pull up the rear of the panty to a comfortable position.

In an attempt to overcome some of these problems,

it has been proposed that panty hose be knit with larger, looser ordifferent type stitches in the portions of the hosiery blanks adapted tocover the buttocks of the wearer. However, this involves a change in theknitting machine and can change the appearance of the fabric. It hasalso been proposed that gussett panels of various sizes and shapes besewn in various locations between the hosiery blanks, or knit in theblanks by fashioning, such as by knitting partial courses in selectedareas. However, the addition of these gussett panels adds to the cost ofproducing the panty hose and often distracts from the appearance.

With the foregoing in mind, it is an object of the present invention toprovide a lower body garment, such as panty hose, and a method offorming the same wherein the front and rear portions of the garment areof different fullness and are shaped to more nearly correspond to thenatural shape of the body of the. wearer and to accommodate lower torsalprotuberances, such as the buttocks, with the amount'of fabric in therear of the panty being greater than the amount of fabric across 'thecorresponding portion of the front of the panty.

This fullness fabric area in the rear or seat portion of the panty notonly provides a better fit when the wearer is standing, but alsoprovides an additional amount of fullness in the seat to permit thewearer to sit, bend and squat withoutbringing about any discomfort orbinding effect, reduces the amount of strain on the connecting seam, andgreatly reduces the downward pulling force on the rear portion of thewaist of the garment.

The present invention will be described in connection with the formationof panty hose, however, it is to be understood that the presentinvention may be utilized in the manufacture of other types of garmentshaving either short or long legs, with or without a closed toe and footat the lower ends of the legs. Also, the panty hose of the presentinvention is described as being provided with more fabric in the rearportion of the panty for accommodating the buttocks of the wearer.However, it is to be understood that the fullness fabric area may beprovided in the front of the garment, as for example, when it is to beworn by pregnant women. I

The panty hose of this invention is formed of a pair of seamless tubularlegs having a panty portion or panty half knit integrally with each ofthe legs and extending upwardly therefrom. The legs and panty halves areeach knit with stitch loops forming-courses extendingcircumferentiallyand wales extending longitudinally of the legs andpanty halves and each leg and panty half includes an inside wale and anoutside wale positioned apart and defining corresponding front and rearportions therebetween. Each panty half is slit downwardly from the upperend with a portion of each of the slits in each panty half being offsetrelative to the inside wales and toward the front of each panty half.The corresponding edges of the slits in each panty half are connected toform a panty with the connection extending up the front and rear andthrough the crotch of the panty and forming a waist opening in the upperend of the panty. The forwardly offset slits in the panty halves providea greater amount of fabric in the rear or seat of the panty than theamount of fabric which extends across the corresponding portion of thefront of the panty to provide fullness fabric areas in the rear of thepanty for accommodating the buttocks of the wearer in both the standingand sitting positions. Several different types of offset slits aredisclosed in this application for providing more fabric in a selectedarea of the panty.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will appear as thedescription proceeds when taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, in which FIG. 1 is a perspective view of panty hose blank forthe right leg and is provided with a slit extending downwardly from theupper end of the panty half and with the slit being curved forwardlyinto the front half of the blank and generally following'the contour ofthe buttocks of a wearer;

FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1 but showing the pantyhose blank forthe left leg;

FIGS. 3 and 4 are fragmentary perspective views of the upper portions ofthe blanks shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and with the corresponding edges ofthe slits in the two blanks being separated;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the blanks shown 'in FIGS. 3 and 4 andillustrating a seam line connecting the rear edges of the slits of eachblank, the front edges being spread apart to show the inside of thepanty portion;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the upper portion of the panty hose withboth the front and rear edges of the slits of each panty half beingconnected together by a seam extending from the front of the Waistopening, through the crotch and up the rear of the panty to the waistopening;

FIG. 7 is a side elevational view of the upper portion of the pantyhose, in flattened condition, and illustrating the manner in which thefullness fabric area in the rear or seat portion of the panty isprovided to accommodate the buttocks of the wearer;

FIGS. 8 and 9 are views of panty hose blanks which correspond to FIGS. 1and 2 but which are provided with different types of offset slits;

FIGS. 10 and 11 also correspond with FIGS. 1 and 2 and illustrate stillother types of offset slits;

FIGS. 12 and 13 correspond with FIGS. 1 and 2 but illustrate yet othertypes of offset slits; and

FIGS. 14 and 15 correspond to FIGS. 1 and 2 but illustrate still furthertypes of slits.

The seamless tubular panty hose blanks illustrated in each embodiment ofthe invention of the present application are preferably knit on aconventional hosiery knitting machine, such as one, having approximately400 needles and each panty hose blank is preferably knit of some type ofstretchable yarn and may be knit with plain or rib stitch loops or theblanks may be knit with patterned stitch loops forming a pattern oftucks, floats, or a combination of both, etc. Elastomeric or rubberyarns or the like may also be incorporated in the tubular panty hoseblanks to provide support characteristics to either the legs or pantyportions or both. The lower ends of the tubular blanks may be knit withor without reciprocated heel pockets and the lower toe end portions mayeither be provided with or without reciprocated toe pockets or the toesmay be closed in the well-known manner on the knitting machine. Also,the lower ends of the blanks may be closed by a conventional toe closingoperation.

Normally, a heavier denier yarn is used in knitting the upper pantyhalves of the tubular blanks and a lighter weight or sheer yarn is usedfor knitting the leg portions. However, it is to be understood that thesame yarn could be used to knit the entire length of the panty hoseblank, if desired. The panty hose blanks, including both the legs andpanty halves, are knit with stitch loops forming courses which extendcircumferentially and wales extending longitudinally of the legs andpanty halves, as illustrated by the longitudinally extending shade lineson the tubular blanks.

The seamless tubular pantyhose blank, as illustrated in FIG. 1 ispreferably knit from the top to the bottom and may be provided with aturned welt 10 which has an elastomeric or rubber yarn incorporatedtherein for forming the waistband at the upper end of the panty.However, it is to be understood that the waist opening of the panty maybe finished by applying a woven or knitted elastic tape thereto, as by asewing operation.

The tubular blank is knitted with continuous rotation of the needlecylinder and while feeding a relatively heavy denier yarn to all of theneedles to form a panty half down to the line 11 where the heavy denieryarn is normally exchanged for a lighter weight yarn and rotary knittingcontinues to knit the tubular leg portion 12. A heavier denier yarn isnormally introduced again at the lower end to form the lower toe 13 ofthe blank. It is preferred that the size of stitch loops being formed bythe knitting machine from the top to the bottom of the tubular blank begradually reduced in a conventional manner so that the tubular blanktapers inwardly at its lower end to aid in fitting around the foot andankle of the wearer.

The panty hose blank illustrated in FIG. 2 is knit in an identicalmanner to that described for the panty hose blank illustrated in FIG. 1and the corresponding parts bear the same reference numerals with theprime notation added. Each leg and panty half includes an inside wale,designated by the dash-dot line 14, and an outside wale, designated bythe dash-dot line 15, which is diametrically disposed relative to theinside wale 14. Thus, the outside wale 15 is positioned from the insidewale 14 and these opposed inside and outside wales define correspondingfront and rear portions F and R therebetween. In selecting the insidewale 14, care should be taken to locate the same in proper relationshipto the foot to avoid twisting of the legs.

Each panty half includes a slit 16 extending downwardly from its upperend with at least the medial portion of the slits in each panty halfbeing offset relative to the inside wales l4 and toward the front F ofeach panty half. In FIGS. 1 and 2, the medial portions of the slits 16,16 curve forwardly from opposite ends and define curved lines generallycorresponding to the contour of the buttocks of the wearer. Both theupper and lower ends of the slits 16, 16' terminate substantiallycoincident with the inside Wales l4, 14' of each panty half.

In FIGS. 3 and 4, the front edges of the slits 16, 16' are designated at16a and 16a while the rear edges of the slits l6, 16 are designated at16b and 16bf. Suitable means is provided for connecting correspondingfront and rear edges of the slits l6, 16in the panty'halves to forma'panty, as illustrated in FIG. 6, with the connecting means extendingup the front and rear and through the crotch of the panty and forming awaist opening at the upper end of the panty. In FIGS. 5 and 6 thisconnecting means is illustrated as a sewn seam S which is preferably ofthe conventional over edge type. Although the corresponding edges of theslits in the two panty halves are illustrated as being directlyconnected together by the seam S, it is to be understood that a crotchpatch or gusset may be interposed in between the edges of the slits, ifdesired and justified from an economic standpoint. Although the pantyhose blanks are usually slit and then sewn together in separateoperations, the blanks may be slit and sewn with a sewing machine in thesame operation.

As illustrated in FIG. 5, the fullness fabric area which is cut from thefront half F of the panty half is now positioned in the rear of thepanty. Therefore, the amount of fabric extending around the medialportion of the rear of the panty and between the outside wales 15, 15'(FIG. 6) is greater than the amount of fabric extending across the frontof thepanty. Since these fullness fabric areas have been removed fromthe front halves F of the panty halves, a reduced amount of fabricextends around the corresponding portion of the front of the panty andbetween the outside wales 15 and 15' so as to provide more fabric intherear or seat of the panty for accommodating the buttocks of the wearerin both the standing and sitting positions. 1

This fullness fabric area provides a pocket, as is clearly illustratedin FIG. 7, and provides additional fabric for accommodating the buttocksof the wearer so that when sitting, bending or squatting the downwardpulling force on the rear of the waist of the panty will be reduced andexcess strain will not be placed on the seam extending up the rear ofthe panty. Because the fullness fabric area is present in the rear ofthe panty, the number of wales extending around the medial portion ofthe rear of the panty and between the outside wales 15, 15 is greaterthan the number of wales extending across the corresponding portion ofthe front of the panty.

Also, because the curved slits 16, 16 extend across a substantial numberof wales adjacent the inside wales of each of the blanks, as bestillustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the wales in the portion of the pantyhalves adjacent opposite sides of the crotch extend in oppositedirections relative to'the seam S with the wales in the lower frontparts of adjacent panty halves converging toward the seam and the walesin the lower rear parts of adjacent panty halves diverging away from theseam. The wales adjacent opposite sides of the seam in the upper rearportion of the garment converge toward the seam while the wales in theupper front portion of the garment diverge away from the seam.

In each of the embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 8-l5, at least themedial portions of the slits are offset relative to the inside wales andtoward the front of each panty half; The parts of the panty hose blanksshown in the embodiments of FIGS. 8-15 bear the same reference numeralsas corresponding parts of the panty hose blanks shown in FIGS. 1 and 2,except that they are increased by ten digits in each successiveembodiment.

The slits 26, 26' in the panty hose blanks shown in FIGS. 8 and 9terminate at their lower ends substantially coincident with the insidewales 24, 24" and terminate at their upper ends in the front'portions ofthe panty hose and forwardly of the inside wales 24, 24'. The medialportions of the slits 26, 26' extend in straight outwardly diverginglines from their lower to upper ends. I

The slits 36, 36 provided inthe panty hose blanks illustrated in FIGS.10 and 11 include medial portions which extend parallel to and forwardlyof the inside wales 34, 34. The upper and lower portions of the slits36, 36 extend rearwardly in straight angular lines and terminatesubstantially coincident with the inside wales 34, 34.

The upper portions of the slits 46, 46 in'the panty hose blanks of FIGS.12 and 13 extend parallel with and forwardly of the inside wales 44, 44.The lower portions of the slits 46, 46' curve rearwardly, as indicatedby the curved lines 47, 47', and terminate substantially coincident withthe inside wales 44, 44'. If desired, the curved portions 47, 47' of theslitscan be formed to extend straight across a course line to the insidewales 44, 44'.

The upper portions of the slits'56, 56' in the panty hose blanks ofFIGS. 14 and 15 extend parallel with and forwardly of the inside wales54, 54' and their lower end portions curve forwardly and then rearwardlyand terminate substantially coincident with the inside wales 54, 54. Thelower portions of the slits 56, 56 are similar to the lower portions ofthe slits 16, 16, illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2.

As illustrated, the lower ends of all the slits terminate substantiallycoincident with the inside wales and portions of each slit arepositioned forwardly of the inside wales. It is important that theforwardly positioned portions be spaced a substantial distance from theinside wales so that a sufficient amount of fabricfullness is provided.For example, in a blank knit on a 400 needle machine the forwardportions of the slits should be positioned forwardly approximatelyone-eighth of the total number of wales in each panty half. This amountsto approximately 50 wales when the blank contains 400 wales. This fabricfullness in the rear of the panty portion provides more wales across therear than across the front. The number. of wales across the rear exceedsthe number of wales across the front by approximately 12.5 percent.

The panty hose, described as an embodiment of the lower body garment ofthe present invention, may be finished in any desired manner. Forexample, many panty hose are currently being sold in unboarded con-'dition while some panty hose are placed on shaped boarding forms andsubjected to heat to set the legs and panty portions in a smooth flatcondition. In each embodiment of the panty hose blanks illustrated, theslits extend across a plurality of wales adjacent the inside wales andportions of the slits are positioned forwardly of the inside wales sothat fabric is removed from the front of the panty and transferred tothe rear of the panty when the corresponding edges of the slits are sewntogether to form the panty. In each instance, this provides fullnessfabric areas in the rear of thepanty and provides improved form fittingcharacteristics to the panty hose. While the fullness fabric area isnormally required in the rear of the panty hose, there will be instancesin which it will be desirable to have fullness fabric areas in the frontof the panty hose. In these instances, corresponding offset portions ofthe slits will be positioned rearwardly of the inside wales so thatfabric is removed from the rear of the panty and transferred to thefront of the panty when the corresponding edges of the slits are sewntogether to form the panty.

In the drawings and specification, there has been set forth severalembodiments of the invention, and although specific terms are employed,they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not forpurposes of limitation.

That which is claimed is:

l. A lower body garment, such as panty hose, characterized by increasedfullness in a selected area of the panty portion to accommodate lowertorsal protuberances of the wearer, said garment comprising a. a pair ofknitted tubular legs,

b. a panty composed of two halves, each panty half being knit integrallywith each of said legs and extending upwardly therefrom, said legs andpanty halves each being knit with stitch loops forming courses extendingcircumferentially and wales extending longitudinally of said legs andsaid panty halves,

c. each leg and panty half including an inside wale and an outsidewalepositioned apart and defining corresponding front and rear portionstherebetween,

d. ea'ch panty half having a slit extending downwardly from its upperend with at least a portion of the slit in each panty half extendingacross a plurality of wales adjacent said inside wale to form fullnessfabric areas between the respective slits and inside wales, and

e. means connecting corresponding edges of the slits in said pantyhalves to form the panty with said connecting means extending from thewaist opening in the panty in the front downwardly through the crotchand upwardly to the waist opening in the rear of said panty, saidfullness fabric areas when connected by said connecting means providingincreased fullness in that area of the panty to accommodate lower torsalprotuberances of the wearer and thereby providing increased fittingquality and comfort.

2. A garment according to claim 1 wherein the portions of the slitsextending across wales in each panty half extend toward the front of thepanty halves to form the fullness fabric areas in the rear of the pantyto accommodate the buttocks of a wearer.

3. A garment according to claim 1 wherein the portions of the slitsextending across wales in each panty half extend toward the rear of thepanty halves to form the fullness fabric areas in the front of the pantyto accommodate a frontal lower torsal protuberance of a wearer. I

4. A garment according to claim 2 wherein the lower ends of the slitsterminate at points substantially coincident with said inside wales ofeach of said panty halves.

5. A garment according to claim 4 wherein the upper ends of the slitsalso terminate at points substantially coincident with said inside walesof each of said panty halves.

6. A garment according to claim 5 wherein the portions of the slitsextending across wales curve forwardly from opposite ends and definecurved lines generally corresponding to the contour of the buttocks.

7. A garment according to claim 5 wherein the medial portions of theslits extend in walewise directions and forwardly of said inside walesof said panty halves, and the upper and lower portions of the slitsextend at angles from the medial portions of the slits to said insidewales. I

8. A garment according to claim 4 wherein the upper ends of the slitsterminate forwardly of said inside wales.

9. A garment according to claim 8 wherein-the media] portions of theslits extend in a straight line positioned at an angle from the lowerends at said inside wales to the upper ends positioned forwardly of saidinside wales. I

10. A garment according to claim 2 wherein the upper ends of the slitsterminate forwardly of said inside wales.

ll. A garme'ntaccording to claim 10 wherein the lower ends of the slitsterminate at points substantially coincident with said inside wales.

12. A garment according to claim 11 wherein the upper portions of theslits extend in walewise directions and the lower portions of the slitscurve inwardly from the lower ends of the lower portions of the slitsand to said inside wales. 7

13. A garment according to claim 11 wherein the upper portions of theslits extend in walewise directions and the lower portions of the slitsdefine curved lines generally corresponding to thecontour of thebuttocks.

14. A garment according to claim 2 wherein said fullness fabric areascomprise a number of wales equal to approximately one-eighth of thetotal number of wales in each panty half.

15. A garment according to claim 1 formed from highly stretchableknitted fabric. 4

16. A lower body garment, such as panty hose, having improved formfitting characteristics and comprismg a. a pair of knitted tubular legs,

b. a panty half knit integrally with each of said legs and extendingupwardly therefrom, said legs and panty halves each being knit withstitch loops forming courses extending cir cumferentially and walesextending longitudinally of said legs and said panty halves,

0. each leg and panty half including an inside wale and an outside walepositioned apart and defining corresponding front and rear portionsthere between,

(1. each panty half having a slit extending downwardly from its upperend with at least the medial portion of said slit being offset relativeto said inside wale and toward the front portion thereof,

e. means connecting adjacent portions of said panty halves to form apanty, said connecting means extending up the front and rear and throughthe crotch of said panty and forming a waist opening at the upper end ofsaid panty so that the number of wales extending around the medialportion of the rear of said panty and between said outside wales isgreater than the number of wales extending across the correspondingportion of the front 'of said panty to provide a greater amount offabric in the rear than the amount of fabric in the front of said pantyof said garment.

17. A garment according to claim 16 wherein the number of walesextending around the rear of said panty exceeds the number of walesextending across the front of said panty by approximately twelveandone-half percent (12.5 percent).

18. A method of forming a lower body garment, such as panty hose,including a pair of legs and an integral panty and being characterizedby increased fullness in a selected area of the panty portion toaccommodate lower torsal protuberances of the wearer, said methodcomprising the steps of a. knitting a pair of tubular elongate blankswith leg portions at the lower ends and panty portions at the upper endsand while forming stitch loops comprising courses extendingcircumferentially and wales extending longitudinally from one end ofsaid tubular blanks to the other, each leg and panty portion includingan inside. wale and an outside walepositioned 180 apart and definingcorresponding front and rear portions therebetween,

b. slitting the panty portions of each of said tubular blanks downwardlyfrom the upper ends thereof while crossing a substantial number of thewales thereof, at least portions of said slits extending across aplurality of wales adjacent said inside wale to form fullness fabricareas between the respective slits and inside wales, and

c. interconnecting the corresponding edges of the slits in the blanks toform the panty with the connection extending from the waist opening inthe panty in the front downwardly through the crotch front of the pantyportions to form the fullness fabric areas in the rear of the panty toaccommodate the buttocks of the wearer.

20. A method of forming a garment according to claim 19 wherein theslits in each blank are curved forwardly from opposite ends and definecurved lines generally corresponding to the contour of the buttocks.

1. A lower body garment, such as panty hose, characterized by increasedfullness in a selected area of the panty portion to accommodate lowertorsal protuberances of the wearer, said garment comprising a. a pair ofknitted tubular legs, b. a panty composed of two halves, each panty halfbeing knit integrally with each of said legs and extending upwardlytherefrom, said legs and panty halves each being knit with stitch loopsforming courses extending circumferentially and wales extendinglongitudinally of said legs and said panty halves, c. each leg and pantyhalf including an inside wale and an outside wale positioned 180* apartand defining corresponding front and rear portions therebetween, d. eachpanty half having a slit extending downwardly from its upper end with atleast a portion of the slit in each panty half extending across aplurality of wales adjacent said inside wale to form fullness fabricareas between the respective slits and inside wales, and e. meansconnecting corresponding edges of the slits in said panty halves to formthe panty with said connecting means extending from the waist opening inthe panty in the front downwardly through the crotch and upwardly to thewaist opening in the rear of said panty, said fullness fabric areas whenconnected by said connecting means providing increased fullness in thatarea of the panty to accommodate lower torsal protuberances of thewearer and thereby providing increased fitting quality and comfort.
 2. Agarment according to claim 1 wherein the portions of the slits extendingacross wales in each panty half extend toward the front of the pantyhalves to form the fullness fabric areas in the rear of the panty toaccommodate the buttocks of a wearer.
 3. A garment according to claim 1wherein the portions of the slits extending across wales in each pantyhalf extend toward the rear of the panty halves to form the fullnessfabric areas in the front of the panty to accommodate a frontal lowertorsal protuberance of a wearer.
 4. A garment according to claim 2wherein the lower ends of the slits terminate at points substantiallycoincident with said inside wales of each of said panty halves.
 5. Agarment according to claim 4 wherein the upper ends of the slits alsoterminate at points substantially coincident with said inside wales Ofeach of said panty halves.
 6. A garment according to claim 5 wherein theportions of the slits extending across wales curve forwardly fromopposite ends and define curved lines generally corresponding to thecontour of the buttocks.
 7. A garment according to claim 5 wherein themedial portions of the slits extend in walewise directions and forwardlyof said inside wales of said panty halves, and the upper and lowerportions of the slits extend at angles from the medial portions of theslits to said inside wales.
 8. A garment according to claim 4 whereinthe upper ends of the slits terminate forwardly of said inside wales. 9.A garment according to claim 8 wherein the medial portions of the slitsextend in a straight line positioned at an angle from the lower ends atsaid inside wales to the upper ends positioned forwardly of said insidewales.
 10. A garment according to claim 2 wherein the upper ends of theslits terminate forwardly of said inside wales.
 11. A garment accordingto claim 10 wherein the lower ends of the slits terminate at pointssubstantially coincident with said inside wales.
 12. A garment accordingto claim 11 wherein the upper portions of the slits extend in walewisedirections and the lower portions of the slits curve inwardly from thelower ends of the lower portions of the slits and to said inside wales.13. A garment according to claim 11 wherein the upper portions of theslits extend in walewise directions and the lower portions of the slitsdefine curved lines generally corresponding to the contour of thebuttocks.
 14. A garment according to claim 2 wherein said fullnessfabric areas comprise a number of wales equal to approximatelyone-eighth of the total number of wales in each panty half.
 15. Agarment according to claim 1 formed from highly stretchable knittedfabric.
 16. A lower body garment, such as panty hose, having improvedform fitting characteristics and comprising a. a pair of knitted tubularlegs, b. a panty half knit integrally with each of said legs andextending upwardly therefrom, said legs and panty halves each being knitwith stitch loops forming courses extending circumferentially and walesextending longitudinally of said legs and said panty halves, c. each legand panty half including an inside wale and an outside wale positioned180* apart and defining corresponding front and rear portionstherebetween, d. each panty half having a slit extending downwardly fromits upper end with at least the medial portion of said slit being offsetrelative to said inside wale and toward the front portion thereof, e.means connecting adjacent portions of said panty halves to form a panty,said connecting means extending up the front and rear and through thecrotch of said panty and forming a waist opening at the upper end ofsaid panty so that the number of wales extending around the medialportion of the rear of said panty and between said outside wales isgreater than the number of wales extending across the correspondingportion of the front of said panty to provide a greater amount of fabricin the rear than the amount of fabric in the front of said panty of saidgarment.
 17. A garment according to claim 16 wherein the number of walesextending around the rear of said panty exceeds the number of walesextending across the front of said panty by approximately twelve andone-half percent (12.5 percent).
 18. A method of forming a lower bodygarment, such as panty hose, including a pair of legs and an integralpanty and being characterized by increased fullness in a selected areaof the panty portion to accommodate lower torsal protuberances of thewearer, said method comprising the steps of a. knitting a pair oftubular elongate blanks with leg portions at the lower ends and pantyportions at the upper ends and while forming stitch loops comprisingcourses extending circumferentially and wales extending longitudinallyfrom one end of said tubular bLanks to the other, each leg and pantyportion including an inside wale and an outside wale positioned 180*apart and defining corresponding front and rear portions therebetween,b. slitting the panty portions of each of said tubular blanks downwardlyfrom the upper ends thereof while crossing a substantial number of thewales thereof, at least portions of said slits extending across aplurality of wales adjacent said inside wale to form fullness fabricareas between the respective slits and inside wales, and c.interconnecting the corresponding edges of the slits in the blanks toform the panty with the connection extending from the waist opening inthe panty in the front downwardly through the crotch and upwardly to thewaist opening in the rear of the panty, the fullness fabric areasproviding increased fullness in that area of the panty to accommodatelower torsal protuberances of the wearer and thereby providing increasedfitting quality and comfort.
 19. A method of forming a garment accordingto claim 18, wherein the portions of the slits extending across thewales in each blank are formed toward the front of the panty portions toform the fullness fabric areas in the rear of the panty to accommodatethe buttocks of the wearer.
 20. A method of forming a garment accordingto claim 19 wherein the slits in each blank are curved forwardly fromopposite ends and define curved lines generally corresponding to thecontour of the buttocks.